Decision of the Supreme People’s Court on Amending the Interpretation of the Supreme People’s Court on Several Issues Concerning the Application of Law in the Trial of Civil Copyright Disputes

Adopted at the 1976th meeting of the Judicial Committee of the Supreme People’s Court on 25 May 2026, hereby promulgated, and shall come into force on 1 September 2026.

Supreme People’s Court 19 August 2026 Judicial Interpretation〔2026〕No. 18

Decision of the Supreme People’s Court on Amending the Interpretation of the Supreme People’s Court on Several Issues Concerning the Application of Law in the Trial of Civil Copyright Disputes

(Adopted at the 1976th meeting of the Judicial Committee of the Supreme People’s Court on 25 May 2026; effective as of 1 September 2026)

In accordance with the Civil Code of the People’s Republic of China, the Copyright Law of the People’s Republic of China, the Civil Procedure Law of the People’s Republic of China and other laws, and in light of judicial practice in copyright trials, the following amendments are made to the Interpretation of the Supreme People’s Court on Several Issues Concerning the Application of Law in the Trial of Civil Copyright Disputes:

1. Item 1 of Article 1 is amended to read: “Disputes over ownership, infringement and contracts relating to copyright and copyright‑related rights, among which infringement‑related disputes include disputes over confirmation of non‑infringement of copyright and copyright‑related rights;”.

Item 2 is amended to read: “Cases concerning applications for pre‑litigation injunctions against infringements of copyright and copyright‑related rights, and applications for pre‑litigation property preservation and pre‑litigation evidence preservation;”.

One item is added as Item 3: “Damage liability disputes arising from applications for pre‑litigation or in‑litigation injunctions against infringements of copyright and copyright‑related rights;”.

The original Item 3 is revised to read: “(4) Other disputes over copyright and copyright‑related rights.”

2. Articles 2, Paragraph 2 of Article 7, and Article 19 are deleted.
3. Original Article 3 is renumbered as Article 2; the term “copyright administrative department” therein is revised to “copyright competent department”.
4. Original Article 7 is renumbered as Article 6; “or appraisal” is added after “authentication” in Paragraph 1.
5. Original Article 9 is renumbered as Article 8; the phrase “made by or with the authorization of the copyright owner” is deleted; “Item (1) of Article 10” is revised to “Item (1) of Paragraph 1 of Article 10”.
6. Original Article 16 is renumbered as Article 14; the sentence “Pure factual news disseminated through mass media falls under current events news as specified in Item (2) of Article 5 of the Copyright Law.” is deleted; references to “current events news” are revised to “pure factual news”.
7. After “newspapers and periodicals” in Article 17, the following is added: “paper‑based newspapers and periodicals approved for publication by the competent department, as well as their digital versions consistent in content and layout format”.

One paragraph is added as Paragraph 2: “Mutual reprinting of published works between newspapers/periodicals and internet information service providers, and mutual reprinting between internet information service providers, shall not be governed by the preceding paragraph; such reprinting shall be subject to permission from the copyright owner and payment of remuneration.”

8. Original Article 18 is renumbered as Article 16; the word “outdoor” is deleted from Paragraph 1; “Item (10) of Article 22” is revised to “Item (10) of Paragraph 1 of Article 24”.

Paragraph 2 is amended to read: “A person who makes copies by tracing, painting, photographing or video‑recording an artistic work specified in the preceding paragraph may use the resulting work in a reasonable manner and within a reasonable scope in accordance with the law, provided that such person may not install, display or publicly disseminate the resulting work in the same manner without permission from the copyright owner.”

9. Original Article 20 is renumbered as Article 18; “bear liability for compensation for losses” in Paragraphs 1 and 2 is revised to “bear civil liability”.
10. Original Article 21 is renumbered as Article 19; “Item (1) of Article 48” is revised to “Item (1) of Article 53”, and “Item (1) of Article 24” is revised to “Item (1) of Paragraph 1 of Article 24”.
11. Original Article 25 is renumbered as Article 23; the phrase “cannot be determined” is deleted from Paragraph 1; “or where reasonable royalties are hard to calculate” is added after “infringer’s illegal gains”.

“reasonable royalties” is deleted from Paragraph 2; “degree of fault of the respondent infringer” is added after “type of work”; “nature and consequences of the infringing act” replaces “nature of the infringing act and its consequences”.

12. Original Article 26 is renumbered as Article 24; “and other” is added after “investigation and evidence‑collection” in Paragraph 1.
13. Original Article 27 is renumbered as Article 25; “limitation of action” is revised to “period of limitation of action”.
14. Original Article 29 is renumbered as Article 27; the order of wording is adjusted; the phrase “Except as otherwise provided in this Interpretation” is deleted; “civil act” is revised to “legal fact”.

The clause “Where a legal fact occurs prior to the amendment of the Copyright Law, the provisions of the pre‑amendment Copyright Law shall apply” and the clause “Where a legal fact occurs prior to the amendment of the Copyright Law and continues after such amendment, the provisions of the post‑amendment Copyright Law shall apply” are each supplemented with “unless otherwise provided by law or judicial interpretation”.

15. Citations to article numbers of the Copyright Law are adjusted correspondingly in accordance with the amended Copyright Law.
16. The order of articles is adjusted correspondingly.

This Decision shall come into force on 1 September 2026.

Pursuant to this Decision, the Interpretation of the Supreme People’s Court on Several Issues Concerning the Application of Law in the Trial of Civil Copyright Disputes shall be revised accordingly and republished.

Interpretation of the Supreme People’s Court on Several Issues Concerning the Application of Law in the Trial of Civil Copyright Disputes

(Adopted at the 1246th meeting of the Judicial Committee of the Supreme People’s Court on 12 October 2002; first amended pursuant to the Decision of the Supreme People’s Court on Amending Eighteen Pieces of Judicial Interpretation on Intellectual Property including the Interpretation (II) of the Supreme People’s Court on Application of Law in Trials of Patent Infringement Disputes, adopted at the 1823rd meeting of the Judicial Committee of the Supreme People’s Court on 23 December 2020; second amended pursuant to the Decision of the Supreme People’s Court on Amending the Interpretation of the Supreme People’s Court on Several Issues Concerning the Application of Law in the Trial of Civil Copyright Disputes, adopted at the 1976th meeting of the Judicial Committee of the Supreme People’s Court on 25 May 2026; the second amendment shall take effect on 1 September 2026)

For the purpose of proper trial of civil copyright disputes, and in accordance with the Civil Code of the People’s Republic of China, the Copyright Law of the People’s Republic of China, the Civil Procedure Law of the People’s Republic of China and other laws, this Interpretation specifies several issues concerning the application of law as follows:

Article 1 The people’s courts shall accept the following civil copyright‑related disputes: (1) Disputes over ownership, infringement and contracts relating to copyright and copyright‑related rights, among which infringement‑related disputes include disputes over confirmation of non‑infringement of copyright and copyright‑related rights; (2) Cases concerning applications for pre‑litigation injunctions against infringements of copyright and copyright‑related rights, and applications for pre‑litigation property preservation and pre‑litigation evidence preservation; (3) Damage liability disputes arising from applications for pre‑litigation or in‑litigation injunctions against infringements of copyright and copyright‑related rights; (4) Other disputes over copyright and copyright‑related rights.

Article 2 Where a party brings a civil action before a people’s court to hold a person civilly liable for a copyright‑infringing act investigated and dealt with by a copyright competent department, the people’s court shall accept the case.

When hearing a civil dispute involving a copyright‑infringing act already handled by a copyright competent department, the people’s court shall conduct a comprehensive review of the facts of the case.

Article 3 Civil actions instituted for copyright‑infringing acts shall be under the jurisdiction of the people’s courts at the place where the infringing acts specified in Articles 52 and 53 of the Copyright Law are committed, the place where infringing reproductions are stored or seized, or the place of the defendant’s domicile.

The “place where infringing reproductions are stored” as mentioned in the preceding paragraph refers to the place where infringing reproductions are stored or concealed in large quantities or on a regular basis; the “place where infringing reproductions are seized” refers to the place where customs, copyright authorities and other administrative organs legally seize or impound infringing reproductions.

Article 4 Where a joint action is filed against multiple defendants whose infringing acts are committed in different locations, the plaintiff may choose to institute proceedings before the people’s court at the place where any one defendant commits its infringing act; where an action is filed only against one defendant, the people’s court at the place where that defendant commits its infringing act shall have jurisdiction.

Article 5 Where a legally established copyright collective management organization institutes an action in its own name based on written authorization from copyright owners, the people’s court shall accept the case.

Article 6 Manuscripts, originals, lawfully published works, copyright registration certificates, certifications or appraisals issued by appraisal institutions, contracts for obtaining rights, and other materials provided by parties may be admitted as evidence.

Article 7 Physical objects, invoices and other materials obtained by parties themselves or through third parties by ordering, on‑site trading or other means to acquire infringing reproductions may be admitted as evidence.

A notarial deed issued by a notary public who truthfully obtains evidence as described in the preceding paragraph and records the evidence‑collection process without disclosing the notary’s identity to the suspected infringing party shall be admitted as evidence, unless rebutted by contrary evidence.

Article 8 “Making a work known to the public” as specified in Item (1) of Paragraph 1 of Article 10 of the Copyright Law means disclosing a work to unspecified persons, and does not require that the public actually become aware of the work.

Article 9 For works referred to in Paragraph 3 of Article 17 of the Copyright Law, where the copyright owner is a natural person, the term of protection shall be governed by Paragraph 1 of Article 23 of the Copyright Law; where the copyright owner is a legal person or unincorporated organization, the term of protection shall be governed by Paragraph 2 of Article 23 of the Copyright Law.

Article 10 Disputes over the order of authorship of works shall be handled by people’s courts according to the following principles: where there is an agreement, the order shall be determined in accordance with such agreement; absent an agreement, the order may be determined based on labour contributed to the creation of the work, arrangement of works, the number of strokes in authors’ surnames, and other factors.

Article 11 Except for circumstances specified in Paragraph 3 of Article 11 of the Copyright Law, where a report, speech or similar work is drafted by another person, reviewed and finalized by one person, and published under that person’s name, the copyright shall vest in the reporter or speaker. The copyright owner may pay appropriate remuneration to the drafter.

Article 12 Where parties agree to create an autobiographical work based on a specific person’s life experience, if they have agreed on copyright ownership, such agreement shall prevail; absent an agreement, copyright shall vest in that specific person. Where the drafter or compiler contributes labour to completing the work, the copyright owner may pay appropriate remuneration to such drafter or compiler.

Article 13 Where different authors create works based on the same theme, if their expressions are independently created and possess originality, each author shall be deemed to enjoy independent copyright in their respective work.

Article 14 Disseminating and reporting pure factual news compiled by others shall indicate the source.

Article 15 Where, pursuant to Article 19 of the Copyright Law, copyright in a commissioned work vests in the trustee, the commissioning party shall have the right to use the work within the agreed scope of use; absent an agreed scope of use, the commissioning party may use the work free of charge within the specific purpose of the commissioned creation.

Article 16 Artistic works in public places as specified in Item (10) of Paragraph 1 of Article 24 of the Copyright Law refer to sculptures, paintings, calligraphy and other artistic works installed or displayed in venues accessible to the general public.

A person who makes copies by tracing, painting, photographing or video‑recording an artistic work specified in the preceding paragraph may use the resulting work in a reasonable manner and within a reasonable scope in accordance with the law, provided that such person may not install, display or publicly disseminate the resulting work in the same manner without permission from the copyright owner.

Article 17 Reprinting as specified in Paragraph 2 of Article 35 of the Copyright Law means the act whereby paper‑based newspapers and periodicals approved for publication by the competent department, as well as their digital versions consistent in content and layout format, publish works already published by other newspapers or periodicals. Where a reprint fails to indicate the author of the reprinted work and the source newspaper or periodical of original publication, the reprinting party shall bear civil liabilities such as eliminating effects and making an apology.

Mutual reprinting of published works between newspapers/periodicals and internet information service providers, and mutual reprinting between internet information service providers, shall not be governed by the preceding paragraph; such reprinting shall be subject to permission from the copyright owner and payment of remuneration.

Article 18 Where a publication infringes another person’s copyright, the publisher shall bear civil liability in light of its fault, the degree of infringement and the consequences of harm.

Where a publisher fails to perform reasonable duty of care with respect to authorization for its publishing activities, source of manuscripts, authorship indicated, and content of published works, it shall bear civil liability in accordance with Article 52 of the Copyright Law.

The publisher shall bear the burden of proving that it has performed reasonable duty of care.

Article 19 Where a computer‑software user uses computer software commercially without permission or beyond the scope of permission, it shall bear civil liability in accordance with Item (1) of Article 53 of the Copyright Law and Item (1) of Paragraph 1 of Article 24 of the Regulations on Computer‑Software Protection.

Article 20 Where a copyright transfer contract is not concluded in written form, the people’s court shall examine whether the contract is established in accordance with Article 490 of the Civil Code.

Article 21 Where a publisher loses or damages a work delivered by the copyright owner for publication, rendering the publishing contract unable to be performed, the copyright owner may request the publisher to bear corresponding civil liability in accordance with Articles 186, 238 and 1184 of the Civil Code.

Article 22 Actual losses suffered by a right‑holder may be calculated based on the reduction in sales of reproductions caused by the infringement, or the product of the quantity of infringing reproductions sold multiplied by the unit profit earned by the right‑holder from selling such reproductions.

Where the reduction in sales cannot be ascertained, the market sales volume of infringing reproductions shall be adopted.

Article 23 Where actual losses of the right‑holder, illegal gains of the infringer, or reasonable royalties are hard to calculate, the people’s court shall determine the amount of compensation upon request of a party or ex officio in accordance with Paragraph 2 of Article 54 of the Copyright Law.

In determining the amount of compensation, the people’s court shall comprehensively take into account circumstances including the type of work, the degree of fault of the respondent infringer, and the nature and consequences of the infringing act.

If the parties reach an agreement on the amount of compensation under the preceding paragraph, such agreement shall be permitted.

Article 24 Reasonable expenses incurred to stop the infringing act as specified in Paragraph 3 of Article 54 of the Copyright Law include reasonable fees for investigation and evidence‑collection, and other related costs incurred by the right‑holder or its entrusted agent.

The people’s court may include attorney’s fees complying with relevant provisions of competent state authorities within the scope of compensation, based on the claims of the parties and the specific circumstances of the case.

Article 25 The period of limitation of action for copyright infringement is three years, calculated from the date when the copyright owner knows or ought to know that its rights have been harmed and who the obligor is. Where a right‑holder institutes an action after the expiration of the three‑year period of limitation, if the infringing act is still ongoing at the time of filing and the copyright protection term has not expired, the people’s court shall order the defendant to cease the infringement; the amount of compensation for infringement damages shall be calculated retroactively for three years from the date on which the right‑holder files the action with the people’s court.

Article 26 Where a people’s court adopts preservation measures, such measures shall be handled in accordance with the Civil Procedure Law of the People’s Republic of China and the Provisions of the Supreme People’s Court on Application of Law in Review of Cases Concerning Preservation of Acts in Intellectual Property Disputes.

Article 27 For civil copyright‑related cases accepted by people’s courts: where the legal facts occur after the amendment of the Copyright Law, the provisions of the post‑amendment Copyright Law shall apply; where the legal facts occur prior to the amendment of the Copyright Law, the provisions of the pre‑amendment Copyright Law shall apply, unless otherwise provided by law or judicial interpretation; where the legal facts occur prior to the amendment of the Copyright Law and continue after such amendment, the provisions of the post‑amendment Copyright Law shall apply, unless otherwise provided by law or judicial interpretation.

Article 28 Where previous relevant provisions are inconsistent with this Interpretation, this Interpretation shall prevail.

Reprinted from the official WeChat account of the Supreme People’s Court.